


the end is here

by idiedinurarmstonite



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-22 17:08:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 667
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30041985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/idiedinurarmstonite/pseuds/idiedinurarmstonite
Summary: Magic's been legalized in Camelot, Arthur's appointed Merlin Court Sorcerer, and Arthur and Morgana aren't fighting anymore.Everything is good, right?ORArthur and Morgana have made peace, or at least, are trying to, but it's hard to let go of so much history.
Relationships: Morgana & Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)
Kudos: 8





	the end is here

**Author's Note:**

> okay so i adore fics where arthur and morgana make up once uther's dead and arthur legalizes magic but also i can't imagine the toll all those years they spent fighting must have had on their relationship. 
> 
> aaaaannd we all know they were both raised by uther so there's no chance of them being adults and Talking Out Their Feelings,,, so

Things were supposed to be good now, right? Morgana had come back, forgiven Arthur (even though he was sure he didn’t deserve it some days), magic was legal and thriving in Camelot again, and Merlin had finally gotten the recognition he deserved as Court Sorcerer. They’d done it! He’d swung the fancy sword however many times Fate deemed adequate, fought all the talking dragons necessary, rescued all the princesses that needed saving (to be fair there weren’t a lot- most princesses are far better with a sword than they’re given credit for. Must be all that needlework they were forced to do as kids- sitting in a stuffy dress and stabbing something that often under the guise of embroidery definitely lead to a kind of bloodlust he’d never be able to fathom.). 

He was supposed to grow old (and complacent) now, bragging to his children about the wars they fought in their time while they just rolled their eyes and ran off to play because spending time with your parents apparently stops being cool when you turn 13, and “oh my God dad, Peter’s parents don’t follow him to the training field and cheer him on there! You guys are so embarrassing- look, if you follow me there, I’m not going to talk to you for the whole week!”- okay yeah so Arthur had thought about it a little bit. Or like, a lot bit. Whatever.

The point was- this was supposed to be their happily ever after! So why didn’t it feel like one?

He’d considered the fact that it was all in his head, and he was being a giant idiot over nothing, till the day he went to visit Morgana at practice to surprise her and her first instinct was to raise her sword to his throat. They didn’t talk about it. Of course they didn’t- Uther Pendragon was a powerful man whose hold lasted over them even in death and, well, years of repressing your feelings are hard to get over in just a couple of months. 

So they didn’t, just carefully skirting over all the topics that might cause one’s shackles to rise, making sure all their interactions with each other were planned, and if Arthur flinched sometimes when Morgana set her wineglass down too loudly? Well, that was just another thing they didn’t have to talk about.

It was so, so different from earlier. So different from when Arthur visiting Morgana at practice meant wide grins and challenges to mock-fights thrown freely about, when Morgana was the only person who had permission storm into his chambers without knocking, complaining about something his- no, their, he had to remember that now- father had done yet again.

Arthur missed it all with an intensity so fierce it ached. They tried to go back to how they’d been- they shared commiserating smiles in council meetings when Geoffrey had been talking too long with no end in sight (that man had blowpipes for lungs, Arthur could swear it), they challenged each other to playfights on the training field, even went for walks in the gardens like they used to. 

And it worked, for a bit- sometimes it almost felt like they were themselves again- Arthur and Morgana, the two most strong-willed and stubborn children the castle had ever seen who loved each other fiercely, yet, as is the way of siblings, couldn’t stay in the same room together for ten minutes without arguing. 

But the moment always shattered eventually, yanking them out of whatever memory they’d been living out in their heads and forcing them into the present. This new reality where they hadn’t argued in days, but the air between them was still more tense than it had ever been when they fought as children.

He sighed, running a hand down his face and mentally preparing himself to go downstairs for dinner with Morgana telling himself that things would be better soon. He was certain of it. He _had to_ be certain of it.


End file.
